


not with haste

by antisocialgod



Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: F/F, tinder au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-20
Updated: 2015-10-20
Packaged: 2018-04-27 05:36:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5035855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/antisocialgod/pseuds/antisocialgod
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Carmilla is being catfished. But at least it's not her identity being stolen.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We do not own anything you recognize. There's an IT Crowd reference thrown in there. Title from a Mumford & Sons song, 'cause we like to keep it consistent.
> 
> Based off of [this](http://swingsetindecember.tumblr.com/post/109946572482/where-one-person-is-actually-famous-and-sets-up-a) Tumblr post.
> 
> (Yes, this is why it has taken us a while to get back to bs au.)

“Okay, but I’m just saying,” Will starts, shoving a forkful of pasta into his mouth. He swallows it all without barely chewing and both of his sisters grimace at him. “It _is_ a very interesting dating tool.”

Carmilla rolls her eyes. “It’s a _hook-up_ app, Will. How is that remotely interesting?”

“That’s exactly it, though, darling sis.” He grins. “You find someone hot, you set up a place to meet them and you have sex. Everyone’s there for the same reason, so you don’t have to deal with the whole trouble of actually getting to know someone and going on dates with them.” He shrugs, leaning back on his seat as he takes a sip of his drink. “It’s easy relief.”

From her seat at the head of the table, Matska looks mortified.

“Oh, God,” she says, and Carmilla has to bite her lip as she pretends to shiver with the thought. “ _That_ is positively horrendous and the image of my little brother finding casual sex with strangers through a phone app is not what I was hoping to get from this dinner.”

Carmilla raises her glass, “I’m with you on that.” She then turns to her brother. “I am _not_ signing up for _Grindr._ You can stop trying now.”

“Well,” Will smirks. “ _Grindr_ is a gay app, so I don’t think it would do you much good, anyway.” He leans forward on his seat, and the way his lips pull a little more to the left is enough for Carmilla to know she’s not gonna like what’s about to come out of his mouth. “You can always try _Tinder,_ though. Plenty of ladies there for you.”

“I’m begging of you, William, please stop.” Matska says, the tips of her fingers pressed against her nose. “I will have nightmares from that.”

“You’re the one who said she needed to get laid.”

She presses her lips together, throwing him a glare. “I most certainly did not use those words.”

Will doesn’t seem fazed. Instead, he just picks up his fork and goes back to his food.

“You would _have_ used those words if you weren’t so busy talking like those uppity bitches you work with.”

“William-”

Carmilla watches as they start to bicker back and forth and lets out a heavy sigh at the idea that this is what her night has descended into yet again. It's definitely not the first time her siblings have tried to find ways for her to get a girlfriend - Mattie has a special fondness for calling herself _Carmilla's Best Wingwoman_ \- but it definitely takes the cake as the most absurd idea she's ever heard.

As if she needs an app to help her get laid.

"Okay, you two-" she calls out, finally interrupting the other table occupants. "You need to stop. First, you," she turns to Mattie. "Stop telling me I need to find someone to date. Isn't that a bit hypocritical coming from the person who's currently _single?_ And you," she rolls her eyes, turning to Will. "I'm glad this thing works for you, but I'm not doing it. So just let it go. And please get yourself tested as soon as possible."

Will glares at her. "That was rude and unnecessary seeing as I was only trying to help."

"Yeah, well, whatever."

They fall silent for a moment, focusing only on their food and Carmilla is momentarily glad that maybe they're finally letting this go, even if not willingly.

That is, until Mattie finishes her plate and takes her glass of wine in her hand.

"You do need to get laid, though," she says, right before she takes a sip.

From his seat, Will lets out a snort that quickly turns into a laugh and Carmilla can't quite believe her eyes when he lifts his hand for a high five and Mattie - _ever-so-stoic Matska Belmonde_ \- actually gives it to him, a self-satisfied smile on her face as she pulls her hand back to finish her wine.

"I hate you both." Carmilla groans. "I hate you both so fucking much."

* * *

 

Carmilla likes routine.

Dinner with her siblings is one routine she is proud to say she hasn’t strayed from despite their incredible ability to annoy her half to death every time one of them opens their mouth. Mattie, she is used to, living with her and all. William is an acquired taste though and Carmilla likes to think a day will come when she can stomach him without her eyes aching because of how much she rolls them in his presence, but that’s probably just her lying to herself.

Routines are routines, though. And her and Mattie spending time with their half-brother is one that Carmilla can’t really say she minds. It’s kind of just _there_. Like work and going up and down the steep escalators at the train station. Necessities.

Another necessity is the drone of the television as she’s trying to fall asleep. Carmilla finds it comforting to hear voices and laughter as she drifts off into slumber, especially since the neighborhood she and Mattie had moved into is far from the hustle and bustle of the city at night. Her program of choice is usually the ever popular _Late Night with Laura Hollis_ that everyone and their grandmothers seem to watch. Carmilla usually falls asleep after the first interview - tonight it’s Blake Lively - letting Laura Hollis’ voice and laughter fall over her like a blanket.

* * *

 

Routine also means that Carmilla has to wake up and go to work everyday because the bills aren't going to pay themselves and she'll be damned if she lets Mattie handle all of their expenses without pulling her weight.

The job as an IT tech for one of the biggest newspapers in Vancouver isn't ideal, but Carmilla can't say she minds it half of the time. She's good at what she does - sometimes _too_ good - and that means she can get away with not being the nicest employee if it means she gets the job done.

"IT, have you tried turning off and on again?" She drawls as she picks up the phone, the noise from the neighbouring gossip section fading to the background as the caller identifies themselves as one of the reporters who can't seem to get his internet connection to work.

Carmilla groans.

It isn't even ten in the morning yet.

"Is your Ethernet cable connected, Ethan?"

From his side of the line, Ethan is quiet for a moment. And then, "Uh, it wasn't. But now it is. Oh and it works!"

"Great," she says, but she isn't sure that Ethan picks up on the sarcasm dripping from her words. "How about you try that one next time you decide to bother me again?"

"Y-yes. Of course. Sorry, Carmilla. Have a good day!"

He hangs up and Carmilla lets her head fall to her hands, a heavy sigh escaping her.

"Was that Ethan again?" Kirsch, her fellow IT tech pipes up from his cubicle in front of hers, an annoying smirk on his lips. "You know he only calls you, right? I wonder why that is."

She flicks a pencil at him. "Don't start with this bullshit again, Wilson."

"I'm just saying." He shrugs. "You're not dating anyone. Maybe little Ethan thinks he has a chance to play on the big boy's playground."

The idea of even paying attention to one of the reporters - let alone one from the _male_ sex - is enough to make Carmilla want to throw up, but the image that Kirsch is trying to paint makes it even worse, if such thing is possible.

"Will people stop talking about my dating life? What the fuck?"

"I'm just saying, bro. You're giving us a bad rep."

Carmilla levels him a glare. "We're IT techs, Kirsch. There's no way our reputation can ever be _good._ "

He pouts in a ridiculously childish way, but it shuts him up, so Carmilla takes it as a win.

She tries to go back to work, but between the phone calls and the endless chatter about anything and everything going on in the lives of celebrities around the globe, she mostly just spaces out and tries her best not to let it all rot her brain.

It doesn't work.

By the time she leaves, she's actually considering the words of Kirsch and her siblings and that can only mean that she _lost_ a few brain cells instead of preserving them.

God, she hates everything.

* * *

 

Three days later, Carmilla finally caves.

She’s woman enough to admit that Mattie and Will and Kirsch all have valid points. It _has_ been a while since the last time she’d stumbled home stupidly drunk with a girl hanging off of her every word and even longer since she’d let someone not related to her sit down and keep her company during a meal.

And the premise of it all seems simple enough. Download the app, log into Facebook - Carmilla doesn’t bother changing her profile picture even if it is one of her wearing a balloon animal hat from when she and Mattie got high off of pot brownies in the middle of the day sometime last summer - and connect. What Carmilla doesn’t expect is how easy it is. It’s almost like a game. Once she figures out which way to swipe so that she can get rid of a profile she doesn’t like, she spends an embarrassing amount of time sitting on the train swiping left.

It’s almost as mindlessly entertaining as that stupid Candy Crush game William had introduced to her a few months ago. Carmilla even pulls up the app at work while she’s leaning back in her chair with her feet up on her desk during a particularly slow hour. If the brainless gossip columnists sitting in the neighbouring cubicles can spend their day yammering on about famous person this and famous person that, she figures she can waste a few minutes on Tinder.

It makes her laugh when she sees the profile of one of the receptionists from downstairs and she shudders when she finds several of the reporters who work the sports section staring back at her through the screen when their respective profiles pop up. Carmilla supposes it could be worse. At least Tinder was no longer showing her profiles of basic college boys - it isn’t very good at following her specifications _at all_ \- like it had been doing when she was on the train. There’s only so much swiping left someone can do before it gets boring, though, and Carmilla looks through a few more potential matches before concluding that Tinder is _stupid_ and a waste of time and that there’s probably no one within the boundaries of this damn city worth swiping right for anyways.

She is about to text Will that his master plan has failed her before the phone on her desk rings and she is subject to another request of password retrieval for some idiot who seems to have the memory span of a pet fish.

* * *

 

Carmilla comes back from a call on the third floor about a broken keyboard - that turned out only to be set to a different language - to find the entire gossip section with their faces pressed to the glass on the far end of the floor, right where she knows to be the office of one of the newspaper editors.

Kirsch is standing up, his hands gripping the short wall that separates his cubicle from the one next to it, all wide-eyes and gaping mouth.

"What is going on?" Carmilla asks him, trying to figure out why it is that everyone just decided to quit working all of a sudden.

Kirsch doesn't turn to meet her eyes. "Laura Hollis is in there."

"Excuse me, _what?_ " Carmilla squeaks, and then promptly clears her throat to get it back to normal. "Did you say Laura Hollis?"

He nods quickly. "I totally did, bro."

And suddenly Carmilla needs to sit down because _holy shit._

Of course, she's heard about Laura's visits before. It had happened before Carmilla started working at the newspaper, but apparently _The Vancouver Sun_ had been Laura's first job and she always visited whenever she was in town - which wasn't a lot, considering how big her talk show in Los Angeles had gotten.

So, yeah, she had heard all about that. But she'd never _seen_ it happening right before her eyes.

_Laura Hollis._

The girl who could charm the most embarrassing stories out of the people she interviewed. The girl who could have all of North America and probably half of the world lining up at her studio just so that they could spill her deepest secrets to her while she took it all with a sweet smile and a captivating gaze.

The girl who's voice lulled Carmilla to sleep everyday.

"Are you okay there, bro?" Kirsch calls out, and Carmilla realizes that she's been spacing out while thinking of Laura Hollis standing just a few meters away from her.

"What? Yeah, sure. Why wouldn't I be?"

Kirsch points to the door. "It's _Laura Hollis._ " He says. "Natalie passed out the moment she saw her walking through the door."

"That girl is ridiculous." Carmilla scoffs, trying her best to hide the fact that seeing Laura would probably have her shaking on her legs as well. "So what if she's there? It's no big deal."

It looks as if she physically slapped Kirsch in the face. "Dude. How can you even say that?" He gestures to the door. "She's like the biggest thing to come out of this place!"

Carmilla rolls her eyes, still trying to play it cool even though - _yeah, she totally is._

"Calm down, fanboy. You're gonna have a stroke before she walks out."

And it's as if Laura hears her, because the second she closes her mouth the door opens and out walks Laura Hollis, looking like she just stepped out of a freaking magazine editorial, all glowing hair and blinding smile.

Carmilla can feel her heart nearly beating out of her chest.

Kirsch widens his eyes as he leans over his cubicle to whisper-yell at Carmilla, "Look at her!"

And boy, _is_ she looking. She watches as SJ - the editor for the gossip column - gets out of her office trailing behind Laura and walks her all the way over to the elevator doors that open right in front of Carmilla's cubicle. They have this sort of familiarity that Carmilla can tell isn't faked, and when they exchange hugs and say something about drinks on Friday night, Carmilla lets herself wonder just how exactly it feels to be _actual friends_ with someone like Laura Hollis.

And then the doors are closing and Laura is gone and the whole thing suddenly feels like a far away dream that Carmilla can't quite fully remember, no matter how hard she tries.

* * *

 

Knowing that Laura Hollis is in town kind of ruins the illusion that her talk show is live from Los Angeles and so Carmilla spends Thursday night picking one of the countless other episodes she’d recorded to fall asleep to instead.

By Friday morning, she’s in an even worse mood than normal thanks to lack of sleep and Mattie comments on it after handing over a peace offering that consists of a brown paper bag that Carmilla knows contains a sandwich, a fruit, and probably a cookie.

“I could hear your television on all night,” Mattie says, sashaying over to where her purse is sitting on the counter. “There’s some make-up under the sink that could help hide your eye bags.”

Carmilla rolls her eyes at that, “We’re completely different skin tones.”

“Don’t say I didn’t offer, darling.” Mattie shrugs and gives Carmilla - still clad in flannel pyjama bottoms and a wool sweater - one last long look before heading for the door. “I’m off. Try not to faint of sleep deprivation at your desk today.”

Carmilla grumbles a _thanks_ at the closing door before opening the bag in her hand and taking a bite of her sandwich. Once she’s finished that, she scrubs the exhaustion out of her eyes in the bathroom and gets ready for work.

Her day goes by relatively quickly seeing as it’s a Friday and no one is doing any real work that could lead to technological problems anyway. She’s about to text Mattie about maybe getting take-out tonight to celebrate making it another week when Kirsch materializes over her shoulder.

“What?”

“Did you want to walk together?” He asks, tightening the the knot of his scarf.

“You live the opposite direction from me.”

“Did you not check your e-mail?”

Carmilla squints up at him.

“Of course you didn’t.” Kirsch pushes at her chair. “The whole floor is having drinks together at The Pint tonight. They have a tab set up and they said there’d be food.” He lowers his face closer to hers and drops his voice into a whisper. “Word on the street is that Laura Hollis is going to be there, too.”

“Word on the street?” Carmilla repeats incredulously, trying to hide the part of her that’s cursing because she _knew_ she should have taken the time to hide the goddamn eye bags. “Who says that these days?”

Kirsch raises his eyebrows and looks expectantly at her. “Come on. It’s not like you have anywhere to be.”

Carmilla grumbles, but admits defeat and texts Mattie that she won’t be home until late instead of asking for take-out. She lets Kirsch steer her to the elevator and then out onto the street below. It’s drizzling, but Carmilla doesn’t bother fumbling for her umbrella because the pub is only a few blocks away anyways.

She recognizes most of the faces once the host leads them to the big table that everyone else has congregated at. One face in particular stands out and Carmilla is both happy and disappointed Kirsch’s sources were reliable.

Laura looks different in real life compared to TV, Carmilla thinks, now that her brain has had ample time to process that she’s actually seeing Laura Hollis in the flesh. Probably because TV Laura looks like Los Angeles personified with her light brown hair and loud lipstick shining under bright lights. The Laura sitting at the same table as her looks younger in a simple button-up. Though her hair _is_ tucked behind her ear in almost trademark fashion.

Carmilla doesn’t pin her hopes on having the chance to talk to Laura at all, not with the whole floor of admirers practically elbowing each other and falling over themselves trying to get a word in. Not to mention the other patrons of the pub who walk over periodically to their table each time one of them recognizes her. What would she even have to say to Laura Hollis anyway? _Hi, I’ve been falling asleep to the sound of your voice for almost a year now_? Yeah, it’s better she focus her energy elsewhere. Like on the free drinks and free food.

With that in mind, she and Kirsch order the most expensive things on the menu and go through several beers each, watching the baseball game on the big screen and occasionally making fun of whomever’s trying to get Laura Hollis’ attention. By the time she’s leaning against the brick wall outside, waiting for Kirsch to come out of the washroom so they can walk to the station together, Carmilla considers the night a success.

Her spirits are dampened a little by Kirsch’s _washroom line is 2 long this is gonna take a while_ text, but she shrugs it off and pulls her jacket a little tighter around herself. At least there are a ton of people out on the streets and she’s not waiting in a dark alleyway somewhere.

Briefly, she entertains the idea of pulling up Tinder. Someone worth a swipe to the right _has_ to be within Tinder radius of her right now. There’s simply no way that she can’t find herself a coffee date in the middle of this huge swarm of people, the odds are too great in her favour.

Carmilla swears under her breath and blames the beers before clicking on the monstrosity of an app. It takes a few left swipes before a too familiar face pops up on screen.

 _Holy shit_.


	2. Chapter 2

She swipes right before she can even entertain the thought of it being a fake profile.

But two blinks later and the all-too-professional picture sitting above the words _Laura_ , _27_ is gone and Carmilla is left to wonder if she didn't just imagine the whole thing in her drunken haze.

Kirsch shows up then, and Carmilla immediately closes the app, pocketing her phone as she watches him blow warm breath into his hands and rub them together as he bounces on the balls of his feet. The way his eyes eyes move left and right in a speed that is just _not_ normal is enough for Carmilla to know that he enjoyed that open tab _way_ too much.

She nudges her shoulder against his arm.

"Come on, loser. I'm missing my warm bed right now."

He nods and the two of them walk together in silence for a while. Then, Kirsch pipes up.

"She seemed nice." He says, hands shoved into the pockets of his jacket. "Didn't she?"

Carmilla furrows her brows at him. "Who?"

"Laura." He explains. "Laura Hollis. She didn't seem one of those stuck-up celebrities that the blabbermouths are always going on about."

And yeah, she really didn't. Carmilla couldn't say that she actually spent time with Laura, but from what she could see from her end of the table, it looked as if the woman had no problem dealing with her fame and it was actually quite pleasant to everyone who stopped by her side to introduce themselves and sometimes even ask for a picture.

It seemed impossible for Laura Hollis to be more perfect than she appeared to be on TV, but the night they'd just had had proved that she, in fact, _was._

"Yeah." She agrees, kicking a stone on her path just as her phone buzzes in her pocket and lets out a notification sound. "I didn't actually think she hung out with the rest of us mere mortals."

"I know, right!" Kirsch grins to himself. "That was really cool. I even introduced myself when I went to get us another round. Do you think she'll remember my name if we ever see each other again?"

Carmilla actually laughs at that, shaking her head just as her phone lets out another sound.

"I wouldn't bet on it, buddy."

She briefly entertains the idea of checking it to see if it was a text from either of her siblings, but it's cold and her hands are warm inside of her jacket and she doesn't want to lose that. Besides, they're a block away from the station, so she decides to just check that once she's somewhere slightly warmer.

"Whatever." Kirsch shrugs, just as they descend into the platforms. "She knew it for like five seconds, so that's already awesome." He glances down at Carmilla for a second, and then nods to himself. "I'll see ya next week, bro. Have a good weekend!"

He then starts to run towards his train that is fast approaching and Carmilla has to shake her head at just how much of a kid he looks when he's drunk out of his ass, even more so than usual.

She takes off her phone and walks to the opposite side Kirsch just headed, seeing that her train is thankfully also arriving and she won't have to wait another five whole minutes for it.

Carmilla almost falls right into the small gap between the train and the platform once she unlocks the screen of her phone to find a _You have a new match!_ notification, followed by a _New message from Laura._

She clicks on it just as she falls on the cool SkyTrain seat and it feels as if her heart is pounding in her chest when the chat window opens to reveal a message from the person who's claiming to be Laura Hollis but cannot, in any way, shape or form, actually be her.

**Laura (1:31 A.M.):**

Hi!!!

 

Carmilla feels her blood boiling and she immediately types out a message.

 

**Carmilla (1:39 A.M.):**

Don't you think it would be easier to catfish someone if you weren't pretending to be, you know, a famous person?

 

And then, much to her surprise, she actually gets a reply.

 

**Laura (1:40 A.M.):**

Wait, who am I pretending to be?

 

Carmilla actually snorts at this.

"Yeah, right."

For some reason, though, she still sends a reply.

 

**Carmilla (1:42 A.M.):**

Laura Hollis? Seriously?

 

The voice overhead tells her that they're one station away from her stop and the sound almost drowns out the notification from Carmilla's phone, but when she looks down at her hand there's another speech bubble on the thread and she can't help but roll her eyes at the four words on 

 

**Laura (1:44 A.M.):**

Yes, that's me! Pleasure!

 

Carmilla decides then that she's just done with whoever this person is.

 

**Carmilla (1:45 A.M.):**

Yeah, and I'm the Princess of Monaco. Go find another idiot to play your games.

 

She slips her phone into her pocket once the train comes to her stop and she doesn't check it again for a reply.

It's only when she's making sure her alarm is off before going to bed that she realizes that the person claiming to be Laura hadn't actually sent one.

* * *

 

Carmilla wakes up on Saturday with a bad headache and a message from “Laura” on Tinder.

 

**Laura (7:11 A.M.):**

Hey, are you religious? Because you’re the answer to all of my prayers.

 

She lets out a surprised laugh as she reads it, but decides not to reply. She can’t really believe the nerve of this girl. Any normal person caught in the act of catfishing would shy away from contact with the person who’d caught them, but no, this girl is _initiating_ it.

After a few more minutes of lying in bed looking at the ceiling, her phone buzzes again.

 

**Laura (8:37 A.M.):**

Um. What about... is your father a thief because you look like a million bucks?

 

Carmilla is responding before she can stop herself.

 

**Carmilla (8:38 A.M.):**

Stop before you hurt yourself, cupcake.

**Laura (8:38 A.M.):**

She lives!

**Laura (8:38 A.M.):**

I was wondering what happened to you

**Carmilla (8:40 A.M.):**

I was sleeping. Like a normal person. Was out late last night.

**Laura (8:41 A.M.):**

Sorry I guess I’m just used to waking up early for work.

 

Carmilla smirks to herself. It’s almost too easy, watching this web of lies get all tangled up.

 

**Carmilla (8:43 A.M.):**

Why on Earth would you get up early? You host a late night talk show.

**Laura (8:45 A.M.):**

...you do know that’s not live right?

**Laura (8:45 A.M.):**

We film on weekdays at ten in the morning.

**Carmilla (8:48 A.M.):**

How come you were at the Vancouver Sun building on Thursday but the show aired anyways, then?

**Laura (8:50 A.M.):**

How did you know I was at the Sun? And I filmed last weekend so I can take a few days off.

**Carmilla (8:51 A.M.):**

I work there!!

**Laura (8:53 A.M.):**

Oh awesome! I used to work there too! Maybe you know some of my friends there.

**Laura (8:53 A.M.):**

Wait, do you still think I’m not actually me?

 

Carmilla rolls her eyes and decides that that’s not worth a response.

* * *

 

Later that day, her phone buzzes again.

 

**Laura (1:43 P.M.):**

I was wondering... why would anyone pretend to be me on Tinder?

 

Carmilla actually rolls her eyes at that because _this girl can't be serious._ Even so, she finds herself actually typing out an answer.

 

**Carmilla (1:45 P.M.):**

Because, cupcake, Laura Hollis is famous and anyone would want to get in bed with her.

**Laura (1:47 P.M.):**

Well, I can tell you that this is _definitely_ not true. You're the only match I got here

**Carmilla (1:48 P.M.):**

Ever thought that maybe it's because I was the only idiot to fall for this?

**Laura (1:55 P.M.):**

Why won't you believe that I am, well, you know, me?

**Carmilla (2:01 P.M.):**

Because Laura Hollis wouldn't be on Tinder.

**Laura (2:02 P.M.):**

And why not?

**Carmilla (2:05 P.M.):**

I have a feeling we're going around in circles with this conversation.

**Laura (2:10 P.M.):**

What if I was Laura, though?

**Carmilla (2:12 P.M.):**

But you're not.

**Laura (2:15 P.M.):**

Anyone ever tell you that you're very frustrating?

**Carmilla (2:18 P.M.):**

As a matter of fact, all the time, yes.

**Laura (2:20 P.M.):**

Well, no wonder you're on Tinder

**Carmilla (2:25 P.M.):**

See, you're just further proving my point that you're not Laura Hollis. She's nice. You're not.

**Laura (2:27 P.M.):**

You don't even know Laura!

**Carmilla (2:30 P.M.):**

Talking about yourself in the 3rd person now, cupcake?

**Laura (2:31 P.M.):**

You're unbelievable

* * *

 

Carmilla’s routines don’t change just because she’s currently being catfished. She still goes to work and insults everyone who dares ask for her assistance. She still pesters Mattie about take-out, but doesn’t complain when she comes home and is greeted at the door by her sister holding up a spoonful of whatever that day’s experimental recipe produced for her to try. She still lets Laura Hollis - the _real_ Laura Hollis - talk her to sleep every night.

It’s all the same, really. Except now she sometimes wonders how much money she can make if she ever sold her story to that MTV show.

Laura - Tinder Laura - is quiet for a few days and Carmilla’s about halfway to smug satisfaction that the girl’s finally given up when her phone rattles on her desk in the middle of the day.

 

**Laura (11:12 A.M.):**

Has anyone ever told you that you look high in your profile photo?

**Carmilla (11:13 A.M.):**

It’s cause I was.

**Laura (11:15 A.M.):**

That’s so unprofessional. You should change it.

 

Carmilla looks skyward in disbelief.

 

**Carmilla (11:15 A.M.):**

You’re the one catfishing me, here. I’m not gonna trust you on what is and what isn’t professional.

**Laura (11:18 A.M.):**

I am not catfishing you!!!

**Carmilla (11:20 A.M.):**

Yeah? Prove it. Wanna hook up later?

 

Carmilla feels a shiver go up her spine at the thought of this idiot saying yes. Not for the first time, she laments how stupid she is for letting this stranger chat her up in the first place. The girl seems harmless enough, but Carmilla’s heard enough horror stories linked to the anonymity of dating sites to keep her from being totally comfortable with the situation.

 

**Laura (11:43 A.M.):**

I would, but I have to catch my flight back to LA.  
  


Carmilla snorts and it makes Kirsch peek up at her over the cubicle divider. She rolls her eyes at him.

 

**Carmilla (11:44 A.M.):**

Sure you do.

* * *

 

Even though her mother hadn’t been the most loving person around, Carmilla can’t deny that she’s proud of the relationship she’s managed to maintain with her siblings. They couldn’t be more different and that sometimes made for less than interesting moments, but she isn't capable of imagining what her life would be without them.

Carmilla liked routine. And, for better or for worse, Mattie and Will were a big part of that.

“Cereal?” Her brother asks, raising a box of froot loops in his hand. Carmilla shakes her head. “Come on, those are good.”

“Yes, William, for five year-olds.”

He sighs, but puts the box back on the shelf and takes the cart from Carmilla’s hand, moving down the aisle.

“Do you need anything for that sorry excuse of an apartment you call home?” She asks, picking up a jar of Nutella and dropping it next to her regular crackers and Mattie’s weird and fancy ones.

“My apartment is perfectly fine, kitty.” Will says, rolling his eyes as he pushes down on the cart’s handle, making the front wheels rise from the ground. “And we also happen to have food there, so thank you for your offer, but it’s not necessary.”

Carmilla glares at him, dropping a bag of flour a little more forcefully than necessary, sending the wheels back to the ground. Her phone rings in her pocket and she takes two packs of coffee from the shelf and hands them to Will before taking it out to check it.

 

**Laura (8:19 P.M.):**

Hey, so… can I have your phone number?

 

She isn’t all that surprised to get messages from Tinder Laura anymore - they’ve been talking for a while now, contrary to Carmilla’s common sense - but she almost drops her phone to the ground when she reads the words on her screen.

 

**Carmilla (8:22 P.M.):**

What the fuck you want that for?

 

There isn’t even a chance for her to put her phone away before Laura replies.

 

**Laura (8:22 P.M.):**

Because it’s easier to talk to you!

**Carmilla (8:23 P.M.):**

Why would I willingly give my number to someone who’s catfishing me?

**Laura (8:19 P.M.):**

God, when will you let go of that? Come on, Carm.

 

It’s the sight of her shortened name that makes Carmilla pause. She turns to Will, who’s gotten himself busy organizing the mess of food that is her cart.

“Hey.” She calls out to him. He looks up and blinks at her and Carmilla takes that as a sign to continue. “Have you ever…”

She bites her lip, not sure if she should subject herself to the teasing that is sure to come from her brother after the question is out of her mouth. A second later, she figures she has nothing to lose, so she goes for it.

“Have you ever been catfished on that _Grindr_ app thing?”

Will looks confused for a second, and then things seem to click in his head because he lets out a barked laugh and leans closer to her. “Did you decide to follow my advice, kitty?”

Carmilla huffs and decides that maybe she has _a lot_ to lose after all, so she turns around and heads for the next aisle.

 

**Carmilla (8:27 P.M.):**

Send me yours first.

 

She half-expects Tinder Laura to back out and not send her a reply, but only a few seconds later the notification flashes on her screen and she opens Tinder to find a number staring back at her, the Vancouver area code nearly jumping out of the screen.

Carmilla rolls her eyes. She’s such an idiot.

 

**Carmilla (8:30 P.M.):**

If you live in LA, why do you have a Vancouver number? Come on, you can quit this already.

 

Will catches up to her, but Carmilla ignores him in favor of deciding which chips and snacks she want to feed on for the week. Her brother still seems amused by her question, so she doesn’t bother to even look him in the eyes.

Honestly, she should’ve known better.

“Okay, fine.” Will says, tugging on her arm. “Stop being bitchy. I won’t laugh at you anymore.”

Carmilla pushes her lips together, but doesn’t say anything.

“To answer your question,” Will continues. “No, I’ve never been catfished. All the dudes were very, _very_ real, trust me.”

“Please spare me the details.” Carmilla groans.

Her brother seems too satisfied with himself, and only gives her an innocent shrug.

“But I guess there’s always a chance of that happening, right?”

Yeah, Carmilla isn’t too fond of that.

“Why would anyone submit themselves to this?” She asks, and her phone rings in her pocket again.

Carmilla doesn’t even look at the screen before unlocking it and opening Tinder.

 

**Laura (8:40 P.M.):**

Because my Dad and all of my friends live in Vancouver, so it’s easier for me to talk to them. That’s the truth. But then again, I’m catfishing you, so what difference does it make where my number is from? Your turn now.

 

She rolls her eyes at the words staring back at her, but can’t help to be a little amused by the fact that Tinder Laura is not even bothering to deny that she’s lying anymore. Is it really catfishing if you know for a fact that the person is not who they say they are?

The details of that particular definition are kind of confusing in her head.

“Look,” Will interrupts her thoughts, dropping a six-pack of beer next to Carmilla’s snacks. “That’s probably not the kind of advice a mother would give their children, but you’re a grown-up woman, so I trust that you can take care of yourself.” He pauses. “Just live a little, okay? There’s nothing wrong with that.”

Carmilla thinks about that for a second, and then she adds yet another bad decision to the list she’s been tallying up since the day she downloaded that goddamn app.

 

**Carmilla (8:50 P.M.):**

Fine, whatever.

 

She sends Tinder Laura her number.


	3. Chapter 3

**Carmilla (11:00 P.M.):**

I’m watching real you on TV.

**Unknown Number (11:01 P.M.):**

You do know that I am the real me?

 

Carmilla looks down at her phone, no longer surprised by the quick responses. Her finger hovers over the _Edit Contact_ button and before she can talk herself out of it - she can't just leave this girl in her contacts unlabelled, that could cause her confusion - she taps the screen. She types in Tinder in the field for _First Name_ and a little spell check box pops up.

Carmilla snorts at the fact that autocorrect apparently thinks she means Tinkerbell. Though she can't deny that Tinder Laura has the same tendency to demand attention as the little fictional fairy. She turns it over in her head a few times, then thinks _fuck it_ , before typing out the stupid pun and saving the changes she'd made to Tinder Laura's contact information.

 

**Carmilla (11:09 P.M.):**

Sure.

**Tinderbell (11:10 P.M.):**

If it would convince you, I'm willing to send you a picture of me.

**Carmilla (11:11 P.M.):**

There are tons of pictures of Laura Hollis out there, cupcake. You think I was born yesterday?

**Tinderbell (11:13 P.M.):**

I could call you! 

**Carmilla (11:13 P.M.):**

Please, I've seen that video of that girl who can imitate the singing voices of a bunch of people. I know the ears can be tricked.

**Tinderbell (11:14 P.M.):**

Video chat! Or I could tweet something. I am seriously not catfishing you.

**Carmilla (11:15 P.M.):**

Can you just let it go?

**Tinderbell (10:15 P.M.):**

You are INFURIATING.

**Carmilla (11:17 P.M.):**

I’m not the one pretending to be someone famous!

**Tinderbell (11:19 P.M.):**

Whatever,

**Tinderbell (11:22 P.M.):**

What part of the show are you on?

**Carmilla (11:24 P.M.):**

The first interview’s almost over.

**Tinderbell (11:25 P.M.):**

I LOVED doing that interview

 

And the thing is, if Carmilla was the kind of person who puts stock and value into sentiment and symbolism, she’d have found significance in the fact that rather than falling asleep to _Late Night with Laura Hollis_ , she drifts off to the sound of her phone vibrating on her nightstand thanks to Tinder Laura instead.

Of course, she’s not that kind of person.

* * *

 

She is, apparently, the kind of person who likes being catfished, though, because texting Tinder Laura actually becomes a _thing._

With time, Carmilla finds herself sharing little details of her day, and Tinder Laura does the same, even when her little tidbits of L.A. life are met with sarcasm and downright rudeness on Carmilla's part.

Before she realizes what's happening, Carmilla is waking up to texts about what Tinder Laura had for breakfast before she went to the studio, or how the traffic was just unbelievable when she went out to lunch and that she was swearing off ever leaving her house in rush hour for the rest of the time she lived in Los Angeles.

Sometimes, like when Carmilla is talking about her dumb coworkers and Tinder Laura actually seems _interested,_ it's easy to believe that it's not all a lie.

And maybe it isn't, Carmilla reasons. There's no way that a person can fake their lives 24/7. And even if Tinder Laura isn't _actually_ Laura Hollis, there's no denying the fact that she somehow still puts up with Carmilla's blatant rudeness and even manages to make her smile with some stupid pickup line that would never actually work in real life.

It may be a lie, but it feels like the most honest non-familial relationship Carmilla's had in a long time.

* * *

 

In fact, if Carmilla's being honest with herself, she's pretty sure she'd have a crush on Tinder Laura if she would just stop pretending to be someone she's not.

She even goes as far as watching a few episodes of the MTV show to see if there are actually people who have managed to make this situation work and she's both excited and scared to know that there, in fact, _have been._

But then she feels like smacking herself, because Tinder Laura might as well be a man, and there's no way this would ever work, no matter how much she tries to pretend otherwise.

Logically, Carmilla should just stop talking to whoever Tinder Laura is. Instead, she finds herself thinking about the fact that a girl who's actually piqued her interest for more than a few moments is out there in the world and - even though she's clearly lying about what she looks like and what she does for a living - she still likes talking to Carmilla, even when most of the people she's met in person don't.

It's confusing and she really doesn't know what to do, so she figures it's best to just take the easiest road on this one.

That's why she keeps talking to Tinder Laura.

* * *

 

**Tinderbell (7:32 A.M.):**

I just had the best chocolate croissants for breakfast. What did you have?

 

Carmilla, standing in a crowded train and running late for work at the same time, almost misses the fact that Tinder Laura knows her well enough that she - if Tinder Laura _is_ a she, which Carmilla has concluded she is by now because of the numerous complaints about jeans without pockets - knows Carmilla's routine well enough to know Carmilla's had breakfast by now. Usually, anyway.

 

**Carmilla (7:35 A.M.):**

I haven't had any. Woke up late.

**Tinderbell (7:36 A.M.):**

Oh no. If you could have anything for breakfast, what would you have?

 

The train hits a particularly rough patch of track and Carmilla almost pitches forward headfirst into the train door. She returns the glares thrown her way before turning her attention back to her phone.

 

**Carmilla (7:38 A.M.):**

That's a tough one, cutie. Maybe strawberry waffles.

**Tinderbell (7:40 A.M.):**

Then I vote that you go and get some. Right now.

**Carmilla (7:41 A.M.):**

No can do, cupcake. Can't be late for work.

**Tinderbell (7:41 A.M.):**

Are we talking Eggo waffles?

**Carmilla (7:43 A.M.):**

No. There's a place my sister and I like. On the West End.

**Tinderbell (7:43 A.M.):**

Uh, Medina?

**Carmilla (7:44 A.M.):**

No. That's in Yaletown. You sure you're from here?

**Carmilla (7:44 A.M.):**

Oh right, we're pretending you live in Los Angeles. Sorry, I forgot.

**Tinderbell (7:46 A.M.):**

I'm going to ignore that. What's the place called?

 

Carmilla types out a quick response just as the tunnel comes into view and she loses signal.

 

**Carmilla (7:47 A.M.):**

Nero.

 

Carmilla pockets her phone, knowing she won’t get the signal necessary to respond or receive messages again until she's sprinting down the sidewalk towards work, desperately trying to beat eight o'clock to her desk. She is aware of the phone in her pocket vibrating twice when she is above ground again, but can't do much about it while running from the station to work.

As soon as she gets to her floor, she makes a beeline for the time clock. She clocks in at exactly eight and then allows herself to lean on her knees for a moment before moving to put her jacket and umbrella away in the break room. She walks as fast as she can towards her desk without drawing attention to the fact that she's walking fast and then drops down into her chair, relieved that her phone isn't ringing.

And also confused as to why there's a styrofoam container on her desk.

"Kirsch." She says. "This yours?"

“No. Some guy came in earlier looking for you. You missed him by a minute.”

“Did he say what it was?”

“No, but I stole the plastic fork it came with. Sorry, dude, I forgot mine.”

Carmilla supposes it can’t be too bad of a prank from Will - what else is she supposed to assume it is? - and flips the lid open.

Strawberry waffles.

Carmilla has never reached for her phone so fast in her life.

 

**Tinderbell (7:48 A.M.):**

Enjoy the waffles. I hope you’re the only Carmilla in the Sun building.

**Tinderbell (7:51 A.M.):**

Oh god. Are you? Please tell me you are. I gotta get your last name next time because now I’m freaking out that some random Carmilla in the mailroom got the waffles.

**Tinderbell (7:53 A.M.):**

It’s the thought that counts, right?

**Tinderbell (7:58 A.M.):**

Didn’t want your day to be off just cause you didn’t have breakfast. I hope that’s okay.

 

Carmilla considers freaking out herself at the thought that Tinder Laura can find her so easily, but there’s a warmth in her chest that she’s not sure what to do with thanks to the fact that this girl, catfish or not, cares enough to remedy a break in her routine.

It’s stupid, because she doesn’t even know what this girl’s name is or what she looks like or what she sounds like, but Carmilla can no longer deny that she’s _attached_.

 

**Carmilla (8:08 A.M.):**

Thank you, sweetheart.

* * *

 

Before Carmilla can even notice it happening, Tinder Laura has swept into her life so fast she might as well get a hurricane named after her.

Her days are filled with texts about anything and everything that she can think to talk with Tinder Laura and her nights are spent watching _real_ Laura being her annoyingly charismatic self on TV while her phone buzzes with messages about the interviews and other little tidbits Tinder Laura seems to find interesting about the episode.

And the thing is, sometimes Carmilla can let herself believe that they're the same person. More often than not, it's very easy. Tinder Laura is _scarily_ good at pretending to be Laura Hollis, down to the speech patterns and sometimes even the silly jokes that she seems to think are absolutely hilarious but that only make Carmilla roll her eyes in a mixture of disbelief and amusement.

She's also really charming.

Carmilla can't understand how she can be so entranced by someone she's never seen, but - like real Laura - Tinder Laura somehow has the ability to command attention like no one she's ever met, and try as she might, Carmilla just can't seem to be able to escape her charms.

"Did you accidentally glue your phone to your face, sis?" Mattie asks one night after dinner, while Carmilla is lying on the couch texting Tinder Laura about the latest tech malfunction Ethan, the reporter, decided to fake.

When she doesn't respond, Mattie throws a pillow at her.

"What the fuck?" Carmilla startles.

"Who have you been texting so much lately?" Her sister asks, rounding the sofa and dropping on the armchair in front of Carmilla. "You've never made any effort to hide how much you despise instant messaging but for the last few months you can't seem to be able to put your phone down."

Carmilla can feel the heat rising to her cheeks, but she bites her lip and gives Mattie what she hopes is a noncommittal shrug.

"I'm not texting anyone."

The way Mattie narrows her eyes at her is enough to let Carmilla know that she doesn't buy that for a second.

"Did my darling sister finally get herself a girlfriend?" She asks, a smirk on her lips that makes Carmilla want to leave the room as soon as possible.

"Shut up." Carmilla huffs, picking up the pillow that fell to the floor and throwing it back at her sister. "I don't have a girlfriend."

"Well, then!" Mattie clasps her hands before pushing up from her chair. "What do you say we hit some clubs tonight, huh? Paint the town red, do some damage?"

And if it had been any other time, Carmilla would be all for that. She always had fun with Mattie and Friday nights with both of them had everything to be unforgettable.

But this particular Friday night, Carmilla just wants to stay inside, curled up in her couch with her favorite pack of chips watching Laura Hollis on TV and telling Tinder Laura that her celebrity counterpart seems much nicer than her, even if she had learned that wasn't really the case anymore.

"I think I'm gonna pass tonight, Mattie." She says, just as her phone buzzes in her hands and she realizes that she hasn't replied to Tinder Laura's last message.

 

**Tinderbell (10:34 P.M.):**

Please tell me you didn't die on me. I don't know where you live so it would be really hard to call 911.

 

A smile stretches on her lips at that, and Carmilla -  too busy typing up a response to Tinder Laura - fails to notice Mattie raising her eyebrow at her and then nodding to herself.

 

**Carmilla (10:35 P.M.):**

Sorry, cutie, my sister needed something.

**Tinderbell (10:37 P.M.):**

Oh! Do you need to go?

 

From the foot of the couch, Mattie clears her throat. "I suppose I better see what William is up to, then." She says, making her way to her room. Right before she closes the door, she turns to Carmilla again. "Do tell your girlfriend I said hi, darling."

She closes the door before Carmilla can say anything but, thankfully, that also means she doesn't see the way Carmilla's entire face goes bright red at her words.

The apartment is quiet for a few moments, and only when Carmilla hears the water running down in Mattie's bathroom is that she lets herself reach for her phone again, her cheeks still burning bright at the thought of ever having anything with Tinder Laura.

 

**Carmilla (10:50 P.M.):**

Nah, she just wanted to annoy me about stuff. Are you all settled? We're about to start.

**Tinderbell (10:52 P.M.):**

Yeah! I got food and my comfy blankets. You're gonna like today's show.

**Carmilla (10:53 P.M.):**

You tell me that everyday, cupcake.

**Tinderbell (10:55 P.M.):**

Well, am I ever wrong?

 

Carmilla lets out a sigh at that, biting her lip as she decides whether or not she wants to tease Tinder Laura about this. In the end, she decides to be honest.

 

**Carmilla (10:57 P.M.):**

No. No, you're not.

* * *

 

**Carmilla (11:01 P.M.):**

Her again?

**Tinderbell (11:02 P.M.):**

What do you mean again? I haven’t had Blake Lively on since February.

 

Carmilla leans back against the couch. It’s September. She’s been talking to Tinder Laura every day for almost seven months. _Jesus Christ_ , what a mess.

 

**Carmilla (11:04 P.M.):**

Whatever. All she does is talk about her baby.

**Tinderbell (11:05 P.M.):**

Her baby is precious. If I had a baby, I would talk about it all the time too.

**Carmilla (11:06 P.M.):**

Well, do you have one?

**Tinderbell (11:07 P.M.):**

No, but I am adopting a puppy tomorrow!!! I think I will call him Spot. I already bought him a cute collar and my Dad said he’d buy him toys.

 

Carmilla is suddenly very afraid she’s being catfished by a teenage girl living in the American midwest whose parents will get her thrown in prison.

 

**Carmilla (11:09 P.M.):**

Can’t you afford to buy your new dog toys yourself?

**Tinderbell (11:10 P.M.):**

Daddio wanted to contribute to his grandpuppy’s upbringing.

**Carmilla (11:11 P.M.):**

Will your dog even have a nice patch of grass to play on in Los Angeles?

**Tinderbell (11:12 P.M.):**

If you’d just follow me on Instagram, you’d know I have a nice backyard.

**Carmilla (11:13 P.M.):**

Social media is useless and distracts people from the real issues.

**Tinderbell (11:14 P.M.):**

God, you’re like that guy from the Simpsons. Have you seen that picture? Old man yells at cloud?

**Carmilla (11:15 P.M.):**

No, but I do understand that you’re implying I’m a close-minded technological idiot. I’ll have you know, I’m an IT.

**Tinderbell (11:18 P.M.):**

Ethan’s favourite.

**Carmilla (11:19 P.M.):**

Shut up.

**Tinderbell (11:19 P.M.):**

You’re mean, but don’t worry, I’ll still send you a picture of my puppy tomorrow.

 

She then goes off on a tangent about someone inventing a tool that helps owners get their dog's attention for pictures and Carmilla gets a little bit lost imagining what it would be like to have this girl babbling into her ear instead of through the screen. She's bit shocked by how much she thinks she'd like that.

Tinder Laura keeps _talking_ and not for the first time, Carmilla finds herself paying more attention to her catfish than the talk show that used to be her lullabye. She makes a choice, then. To move forward. To separate this magnetic personality she's grown fascinated from the far-away celebrity she'd come to associate said personality with.

 

**Carmilla (11:55 P.M.):**

Can I ask you a question?

**Tinderbell (11:55 P.M.):**

I always pick the one horse sized duck over the duck sized horses. Just so you know.

**Carmilla (11:56 P.M.):**

Noted.

**Carmilla (11:58 P.M.):**

What's your name?

**Tinderbell (11:59 P.M.):**

Will you believe me if I told you the truth?

**Carmilla (12:00 A.M.):**

Maybe.

**Tinderbell (12:01 A.M.):**

Laura.

 

Carmilla looks down at her phone and makes another decision.

 

**Carmilla (12:02 A.M.):**

Thanks.

**Laura (12:03 A.M.):**

You're welcome.

 

Carmilla spends the next day going through Laura Hollis' social media. It's a bit like an exorcism, she thinks. Time to get rid of this persona she's put Tinder Laura - no, just Laura - against since they first matched on that godforsaken app.

But then she sees a picture of a dog when she refreshes Laura Hollis' Instagram page and she lets herself marvel at how good of a catfish this girl is.


	4. Chapter 4

It gets easier after that, though.

Carmilla can't deny that Laura has become a big part of her life, and after a while she finds herself no longer caring if the other girl lives in L.A. or Vancouver, whether she is actually a TV show host or not.

Her routine goes from work and time with her siblings to _Laura_ , and work, and time with her siblings. It happens so smoothly that she only realizes there's been a change to her carefully constructed life when she's actually _early_ for work - the first time in all the years she's worked at the _Sun_ \- because Laura had texted her at the crack of dawn when she woke up and Carmilla hadn't been able to sleep after that.

It's a messed up situation and Carmilla is well aware that things have a very real possibility of ending badly, but she _likes_ Laura. She likes the stupid emojis she sends when she's busy and can't actually send a full reply, or the way she just has a tendency to ramble even through text messages, which means Carmilla often gets line after line of nonsense that she would find extremely annoying if it were anyone else, but not Laura.

For some reason, Laura captivates her in a way that no one has ever been able to do.

 

**Laura (7:42 P.M.):**

Let's watch a movie.

 

That gets Carmilla confused.

 

**Carmilla (7:43 P.M.):**

What?

**Laura (7:44 P.M.):**

A movie. You and I. Come on, Carm.

 

She has to read the words on her screen over and over again before she can accept that this is actually what Laura wrote.

The idea that Laura - whoever she is - is asking her out to the movies is enough to leave her hands shaking and her heart racing because she isn't ready for _that._

She decides to play it cool.

 

**Carmilla (7:48 P.M.):**

Are you asking me on a date, cutie?

**Laura (7:49 P.M.):**

Well, we DID meet on Tinder.

 

Carmilla has to take a deep breath at that, because, well, _yeah._

 

**Carmilla (7:50 P.M.):**

You're forgetting only one thing, though. You're in LA, remember?

 

She bites her lips as she waits for a response and it feel as if a lifetime goes by before she feels her phone buzzing in her hand again.

When she reads the words on her screen, she lets out a heavy breath.

 

**Laura (7:52 P.M.):**

Fair point. But I meant that we'll just put something on Netflix and watch it together.

 

At that, Carmilla smirks.

 

**Carmilla (7:56 P.M.):**

Did you just proposition me with long-distance Netflix and chill?

 

And she hates herself a bit for it, but she can picture Laura reading her text and laughing at it and she also hates how much she loves this mental image.

 

**Laura (7:58 P.M):**

I guess I have.

**Laura (8:00 P.M.):**

But maybe once I'm in Vancouver again we can do that on the same couch?

 

And just like that, Carmilla feels her heart racing again. They've spent so much time on... _this_ , that Carmilla can't even imagine how it would be to actually meet Laura. How different would she be from the image Carmilla carefully put together between Laura Hollis and the things her brain conjured up? Would it ruin this thing that they have if it ever became more than just two strangers exchanging text messages?

(Who is she kidding, really? It's already _more_ than that.)

 

**Laura (8:10 P.M.):**

Carm?

 

She tries her hardest to think of something to say, but she can't. Carmilla can't decide whether the idea of meeting her - _Laura_ is exciting or just downright terrifying.

 

**Carmilla (8:15 P.M.):**

Sorry, cupcake, my brother just came over and he needs my help with something. Rain check on that movie?

**Laura (8:17 P.M.):**

Oh.

**Laura (8:18 P.M.):**

Yeah, of course! I'll talk to you later?

 

Carmilla hates herself a bit for the lie, but she figures it's for the best, at least until she can figure out what to do about this situation.

 

**Carmilla (8:20 P.M.):**

Sure thing.

 

She doesn't text Laura for the rest of the night.

* * *

 

Carmilla doesn’t phase Laura out of her life. Not really, anyway. They still talk an impossible amount every day and Carmilla is still inexplicably charmed by the sunny personality Laura seems to have. It’s just that Carmilla’s trying to draw a line.

Two or three sleepless nights after Laura had asked her to watch a movie, she’d decided that a line needed to be drawn. It’s just too easy to slip into this with Laura, too natural. Carmilla has to remind herself on a daily basis that she might know about Laura’s favourite breakfast foods - chocolate croissants - and her favourite trails to walk her dog - the dog is named Conan and the trail is called the Runyon Canyon loop - but that those are only bits and pieces. She has no idea if the personality she likes so much behind a screen even transfers into real life.

The only thing she really does know is that this has about a one in seven billion odds of working out without one of them getting hurt in some way.

And maybe those odds would be higher if Carmilla only took herself into consideration, but that’s not something she can do anymore. Not after almost eight months of whatever this is.

So she steps back a little, gives Laura some space. God knows Carmilla herself needs it.

Later on, though, it's that theoretical space that causes Carmilla not to find it strange that her mornings no longer start with Laura going off about breakfast foods. Of course, it stings a little whenever it happens, but by the fifth time Carmilla’s sitting at her desk bleary eyed and textless, she’s used to it.

At least that’s what she tells herself.

She’s seriously considering sending the first text, is even halfway to reaching for her phone, when the work phone on her desk starts ringing.

"IT." She says.

"Uh. Hi!" The woman's voice is familiar and Carmilla chalks it up to the fact that this person has probably called her multiple times to fix issues that a toddler could have dealt with. "I'm having issues with getting into the system?"

"Did you spell your username and password correctly?"

"Of course I did."

Carmilla sighs, can't help it. "Floor and cubicle number."

"Sixteen. Forty-seven? Forty seven."

"Be right there."

Carmilla picks her phone up, still no messages, and pockets it before heading for the elevator.

She's not sure what she expects to find when she responds to the call - actually, that's a lie. Whoever's called for help is usually on their phone texting or playing a stupid game. But never in a million years would she have expected to find Laura Hollis sitting on the desk, staring at the exact spot Carmilla is standing in, as if she'd been expecting her.

"Hey."

"Hey." Carmilla responds as if on autopilot. Her brain is telling her this does _not_ make sense and that there's no reason for a fucking talk show host - especially this particular one that's been an indirect constant in her life over the past few months - to be calling her for help accessing the system. Even her dreams make more sense than this.

But then Laura Hollis rolls her eyes, "Oh come on, Carm. A little more enthusiasm would be nice."

* * *

 

Carmilla is pretty sure - once they're sitting across from each other at this quaint coffee place Laura claimed to love - that she's giving all the fish in the sea a run for their money with how good she is at gaping.

(There's a bit of comfort in knowing that the entire room is doing the same, though not much.)

"You're Laura Hollis." She says, once the waitress sets their drinks down - Laura hadn't even asked what she wanted before she placed the order and Carmilla was both surprised and well, _not really,_ that she knew exactly what to get for her.

"I'm pretty sure I've been telling you this for the last eight months or so." There's a smug smile on Laura's face and Carmilla is too busy trying to wrap her mind around the fact that Tinder Laura is actually _Laura Hollis_ that she can't even bring herself to be insulted by it.

"Yeah," she agrees. "But that's not _possible._ "

Laura seems even more amused by this. "And why not?"

"Because," Carmilla scoffs. "Laura Hollis wouldn't be on Tinder."

Much to her surprise, Laura rolls her eyes at that. The action catches Carmilla's attention and yet again she's reminded of the fact that Laura had been telling the truth.

From the very _beginning,_ it had always been her.

All the times Carmilla had fallen asleep listening to Laura's voice and reading her words on the screen, it had been _the same person._

"I think we've established that yes, I would." Laura says, taking a sip of her drink. Then, she meets Carmilla's eyes and smiles. "In fact, I'm glad I was."

Carmilla feels her heart racing at that, and she tries to hide the blood rushing to her cheeks by bringing her cup of coffee to her lips.

Once she sets it down, she leans back on her chair, running a hand through her hair.

"I'm such an idiot."

Laura chuckles. "Well, I can't say I disagree."

Silence falls over them as Carmilla tries to make sense of everything that's happened in the last hour, and it goes on for nearly five minutes before Laura clears her throat and gives her a smile that looks scarily like the one she often gives the people she interviews, and nothing like the one she'd given Carmilla five minutes ago.

"So," she starts. "You work at the _Sun._ How do you like that?"

The question takes Carmilla by surprise, not even because it's something that they've talked about a long time ago and Laura - perhaps more than anyone - knows how _boring_ Carmilla finds her job, but because gone is the Laura that was teasing her when they met just a while ago.

In front of her, stands Talk Show Host Laura Hollis.

Carmilla is momentarily baffled by that, until she notices that Laura is biting her lip and fidgeting  with her cup of tea - no coffee, bad for her voice - and she realizes that Laura is _nervous._

Laura Hollis is actually nervous around her.

"I don't know," Carmilla says, trying to figure out a way to make Laura relax again. "You've been a talk show host for a while now. How do _you_ like that?"

And it works, she thinks, because Laura's eyes widen for a second and then she's shaking her head, a faint smile - _Carmilla's_ smile - on her lips.

Carmilla leans forward, her own smirk in place, "Look, cutie, let's just stop this, okay? I know that you once got locked out of your house in your unicorn pajamas, there's really no reason for you to be nervous around me."

"Oh, God." Laura groans, hiding her face in her hands for a moment before looking at Carmilla again. "Never let me drink and tell you things about my childhood anymore."

"Sorry, no can do." Carmilla shakes her head. "In fact, I encourage you to do that more often. It was a really amusing night."

They both take a sip of their drinks again, and when Laura sets her down, she tilts her head to the side and studies Carmilla for a moment. Ten seconds go by, before she says:

"Do you believe me now?"

From her side of the table, Carmilla shrugs at her. "It's kinda hard not to, right? You're really Laura Hollis."

Laura nods, blinding smile plastered on her lips. "I really am!"

One thought occurs to Carmilla, and she twirls her spoon around her coffee for a moment before she gives Laura the biggest shit-eating grin she's probably given anyone in her life.

"Laura Hollis swiped right for me on Tinder."

A pack of sugar makes its way towards her face as Laura tries to glare at her - and fails miserably, which doesn't really surprise Carmilla.

(She does succeed at looking extremely cute, though.)

"Please get over yourself."

* * *

 

They hang out a lot over the few days that Laura’s in town. They go out for dinner and drinks after Carmilla gets off work on the Friday and meet up again on Saturday after Laura sees her Dad. They watch a couple of movies at the theatre down the street from Laura’s hotel - Carmilla has painful flashbacks to the last time Laura asked her to a movie and makes sure to be on top of her movie-watching game to make up for it - and then go out for dinner again.

Carmilla finds she doesn’t mind spending time with Laura.

(If _doesn’t mind_ actually means she would sell her left arm as long as it’s guaranteed she’d be able to do it again.)

She’s also about three hundred percent sure that that barely there crush she’s been trying to brush away has now turned into a monstrous one. And at first it isn’t a problem because it takes them a bit of time to find that easy balance they have over text messages, but once they click, Carmilla goes completely head over heels.

In short, Laura Hollis is the epitome of charming and Carmilla should not be blamed for wanting to kiss her.

She doesn’t, of course. Hell, she barely touches the girl all weekend - partly because God, it’s _Laura Hollis_ and partly because she doesn’t want the dream to end if it is one - at least until Laura initiates a hug when Carmilla mentions she wouldn’t mind hanging out with her at the airport in between check-in and boarding for her flight. Carmilla wonders briefly if she’s being too obvious too quickly about her intentions, but then she remembers that Laura flew a thousand miles partly to come see her and all those worries vanish.

So Carmilla tags along, even helps Laura unload her luggage from the cab’s trunk. It’s only when Laura’s all checked in and pestering her to take a selfie with her while they’re sitting in front of a massive green statue - “so that I can prove to my friends that you’re not a figment of my imagination” - that it hits Carmilla she’s really leaving.

“Laura.” She says, still not used to saying the name out loud even though she’s been saying it in her head - reading it? - for a while now. “I had a really good weekend.”

“Me too.” Laura responds, holding out the bottle of lotion in her hand, silently offering Carmilla some. Carmilla holds her hand out and smiles when Laura takes care to squeeze the drop of lotion into a swirl. “We ate at some really good places.”

Carmilla just hums in agreement, rubbing her hands together. Laura puts her lotion back in her bag and they sit in silence for what feels like hours. Several groups of tourists pose with the statue within that time and every once in a while, the silence is broken by one of them laughing at people’s antics.

Carmilla has to stifle a particularly loud laugh when a little boy trips over his own feet in front of them and Laura drags out a _wrecked_ under her breath.

It happens very quickly then. One minute, Carmilla’s inhaling sharply through her nose in an attempt not to hurt a child’s feelings and then the next, she’s desperately trying to catch her breath because Laura’s lips pressing against her own have taken it away.

She’s surprised she even has the presence of mind to reach up and tangle her hand in Laura’s hair, but she manages and the whimper that Laura lets out is more than enough reward, and incentive, for her to do the same with her other hand.

“Damnit, I should have kissed you as soon as I saw you.” Laura mumbles when they finally break apart. “I’m stupid.”

Carmilla, still out of breath, manages to say, “I thought you were catfishing me for eight months.”

“We’re both stupid.” Laura allows. “Will you let me call you now that you know I’m not some creep pretending to be a celebrity?”

“I am demanding that you call me as soon as you get to L.A..”

“And video chat?”

“And video chat.”

Laura tilts her head and Carmilla kisses her again.

“Carm.” She says. “I think I’m gonna be coming home a lot more now.”


	5. Chapter 5

True to her word, Laura texts her as soon as her plane touches down in Los Angeles.

It’s a full day before they move to video chatting, though, because Laura has to be at the studio early the next day and then she spends the entire afternoon running some errands that she claims to be _boring and kind of annoying, but sadly necessary._

Carmilla doesn’t mind, really. She would be lying if she said she doesn’t miss Laura’s face, but the memory of their kiss is still fresh in her mind - honestly, it probably would be for the longest time - and all she has to do is close her eyes to create the perfect image of Laura in front of her, a warm gaze and lips stretched in a smile that Carmilla didn’t know she loved so much until it was directed at her.

It’s been a little over twenty four hours since Laura left and Carmilla is already counting the minutes until they can see each other again.

She hates how much she craves Laura Hollis.

(Except she doesn’t, not a single bit.)

* * *

 

Carmilla is lying on her couch - after successfully throwing all the leftovers in her fridge together to make a decent meal for dinner - when Mattie walks in, raising an eyebrow at the sight of her.

“Finally figured out the way back home, sis?” She asks, throwing her bag on the kitchen bar and moving to get a bottle of one of her weird, berry-flavored juices.

“What is _that_ supposed to mean?” Carmilla huffs, staring at her phone screen as she waits for a text from Laura.

“Well, you did disappear all weekend.” Her sister points out. “Even William found it weird that you weren’t lying with your face glued to the tv last friday night, which, by the way-” She takes the remote from Carmilla’s hand, clicking a few buttons and opening up the PVR memory. “What the fuck is this?”

Carmilla’s eyes widen at the sight of months-worth of _Late Night with Laura Hollis_ that she had put to record long before she’d even matched with Laura on Tinder.

“It must have accidentally recorded.” She mumbles, shoulders going up and down in a shrug.

“Really?” Mattie challenges. “So our TV just _accidentally_ decided to record some talk show you also happen to watch _every day?_ ”

There's no way Carmilla can escape that and she knows. Mattie is like a dog with a bone when she wants to find out something and she won't settle with a bullshit excuse like _oh, I just happen to like the show._

Carmilla is ready to come clean about the events of the past months when her phone buzzes in her hand and Laura's name shows up on the screen.

 

**Laura (8:43 P.M.):**

Video chat?

 

If Carmilla were a religious person, she'd thank God for Laura's perfect timing.

 

**Carmilla (8:45 P.M.):**

Yes, FINALLY.

 

As it is, though, she only gets up from the couch, throwing a _you can delete it, if you want_ behind her shoulder before she locks herself up in her room.

Just as she settles on her bed, Laura's name flashes on her screen again and Carmilla wastes no time in accepting the call, a grin spreading on her lips just as Laura's face shows up.

"Miss me?" Is the first thing she says, and Carmilla doesn't even bother to pretend that she didn't, because she'd been going crazy with the thought of when she'd get to see Laura again.

"You have no idea, cutie."

That makes the grin on Laura's face grow larger.

"You know, we could've been doing this for, like, _months_ now."

Carmilla groans, because she's well aware of that now and every text she gets from Laura is a painful reminder of how _stupid_ she'd been. Even if she didn't believe that Laura was being honest, there were ways she could've found out the truth and she'd been too stubborn to do that.

"Will you ever let me live that down?" She asks, sliding down from her seated position against her pillows.

"Nope, never." Laura says and Carmilla swoons a little more at the way she pops the _p_ on the first word. "I'm gonna make sure to remind you everyday that you actually thought I wasn't myself."

Carmilla scoffs, "Can you really blame me? You're Laura Hollis!"

"I think we've established that by now, Carm."

"Whatever."

"Anyway," Laura continues, the amusement clear on her face at Carmilla's antics. "More often than not I just found it hilarious how in denial you were."

"I wasn't in denial." Carmilla tries, but she knows that neither of them buy that.

"You were."

"Was not."

Laura laughs at that, and Carmilla is momentarily fascinated by the way she throws her head back and even shakes a little as the sound escapes from her lips.

_God,_ Carmilla thinks, _she's beautiful._

"I bet you just couldn't believe your idol swept right for you." Laura teases.

"Oh?" Carmilla raises an eyebrow. "My idol? Is that so?"

"Yup," Laura nods, popping the _p_ again. "It's okay, Carm. I know you're my number one fan."

And the way she says it makes the palms of Carmilla's hands sweat because she doesn't think the words hold the same meaning to her as they do to Laura. Carmilla can't quite figure it out, but there's something about them that just tug on her heartstrings and make her _warm._

"Sure I am," she deflects. "Keep fooling yourself, Laura Hollis."

Laura bites her lip for a moment, and Carmilla watches as she moves from what is apparently the kitchen to a couch before she says something.

"Well," she says, and her words are careful, as if she isn't sure she wants to push them out. "I suppose you have many fans yourself on Tinder. Despite your very unprofessional profile picture, anyway."

The end of her sentence is a poor attempt in deflecting from the real meaning of her words, Carmilla thinks, but she sees right through it. And the thought that Laura would ever think there could be anyone else for Carmilla on freaking _Tinder,_ it's - well, it's ridiculous, really.

"Hey," Carmilla calls out, bringing her phone closer to her face as if by doing that she could get closer to Laura herself. "I deleted that thing a week after I started talking to you."

Laura seems surprised by this. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." Carmilla nods. And then, she smirks. "But I don't doubt that I was very popular. I just wouldn't know, really."

Laura's eyebrows drag further together. "Why's that?"

Carmilla shrugs. "I only swiped right for you."

* * *

 

“What’s wrong with you?”

Carmilla looks up when Kirsch’s voice startles her out of a particularly vivid daydream that had involved walking around Stanley Park and playing fetch with Conan while Laura laughed from a park bench. She shakes her head a bit to clear it.

“Nothing.”

“You sure? I’ve been calling your name for like five minutes now.”

Carmilla sighs, “Don’t you have somewhere else to be?”

“Nope.” Kirsch disappears from view only to reappear again a moment later, his office chair rolled close to Carmilla’s. “Who’s the lucky lady?”

“None of your business.”

“Really? Because the flowers she sent last week almost killed me.”

“How was she supposed to know you were allergic?” Carmilla shoves at his arm rest. “I already apologized for that.”

He smiles, “Maybe I’d like her to apologize in person.”

“Not a chance.” Carmilla responds immediately, her hand automatically reaching for her cellphone when it gives a quick buzz on her desk.

 

**Laura (1:13 P.M.):**

Will you be home soon? I miss your stupid voice.

 

“You’re smiling again.”

"Shut up, Wilson."

 

**Carmilla (1:14 P.M.):**

Two hours and forty five minutes until I'm out of this place. So, no.

**Laura (1:14 P.M.):**

This rule that I can't call you when you're working is stupid.

**Carmilla (1:15 P.M.):**

I should make it that you can't text me while I work either. You're gonna get me fired.

**Laura (1:16 P.M.):**

Pfft. Did you already have your lunch break?

**Carmilla (1:17 P.M.):**

Yeah. While you were on set.

 

When she looks up from her phone, Carmilla is pleased to see that Kirsch has left her alone.

 

**Laura (1:19 P.M.):**

Do you ever think about how weird it is that we've only really been around each other for two days?

**Carmilla (1:18 P.M.):**

I've carried you in my pocket all the other days, sweetheart.

* * *

 

Carmilla comes home Friday afternoon fully planning on following through on her promise to call Laura as soon she can only to find the path to her bedroom blocked by her siblings.

 

**Carmilla (4:42 P.M.):**

That phone call might have to wait a minute, darling. My brother and sister seem to need something from me.

**Laura (4:42 P.M.):**

I've waited a whole day. A few more minutes won't make a difference. Take your time.

 

"Where've you been?" William asks in a serious tone. Carmilla catches Mattie's eye and tries not to laugh at his demeanour as she slips her phone into her pocket.

"Work. My shift was eight to four. My shift every day is eight to four."

"No. We mean where have you been the past few months?" Mattie steps forward and touches her elbow. "We barely see you these days. And when we do, you're either watching mindless television - "

"It's not mindless." Carmilla cuts in.

" - or holed up in your room doing god knows what. Is something wrong?"

Carmilla laughs.

"Nothing's wrong I just - " She's not sure what to say or how to say it. It's not like she and Laura have talked about it. They seem to have made a silent agreement that that's something to be discussed in person. "I'm - I met someone."

Her words are met with stunned silence.

"Oh." Mattie recovers first. "That's splendid. When do we get to meet her?"

"She's not - she isn't from around here." Carmilla can't help the way she fidgets under their scrutiny. "Can we cut this Maury episode short so I can nap please?"

"I didn't know _please_ was even in your vocabulary - "

"Shut the fuck up, William." She growls, throwing him her most menacing glare before turning to Mattie. "Can I go now?”

Mattie waves a hand in dismissal and Carmilla sighs in relief as she moves past them and towards her room. She looks backwards during her walk down the hallway once and doesn’t do it again once she sees her siblings watching after her.

As soon the bedroom door is shut behind her, Carmilla hits the FaceTime button next to Laura’s name. She glances quickly at the mirror on her dresser - well, too late to do anything about it now anyways - before turning back to the screen.

The first thing Carmilla sees is a large heap of fur and then Laura’s hands as she pushes her dog over to the side.

“Can I ask you something?” Are the first words out of Laura’s mouth.

Carmilla nods and moves to sit down on her bed, her eyes not once leaving Laura’s face.

“The show wraps in a few days for Christmas break and I usually spend a couple weeks here before flying home to see my Dad just before Christmas, but I was thinking that this year I could leave a little earlier and maybe drive down instead of flying so I can take Conan with me.” She takes a breath. “That way I can spend some time with friends I haven’t seen in a while. Do you think they’d like to see me?”

_Would you like to see me?_

Carmilla doesn’t miss what Laura’s trying to ask her.

“When would you get here?”

Laura bites her lip, “Maybe next Saturday?”

Carmilla watches Laura’s face. She really is adorable when she’s nervous.

They’re both silent for a moment before Carmilla figures it’s time to put Laura out of her misery. “Is there any way you can get here sooner?”

Laura honest to god lights up like a Christmas tree.

“That would be okay then?”

“More than okay.” Carmilla hesitates. “I’ve missed you.”

Laura leans forward and Carmilla suddenly feels the miles in between them seep into her bones. It’s exhausting to have Laura so far away.

“I’ll be there soon.”

_Not soon enough_ , Carmilla wants to say, but refrains because of the thought that a week is nothing compared to the months she’s been waiting.

(Sometimes, she feels like she’s been waiting for Laura Hollis her whole life.)

* * *

 

Laura texts her with a  _Honey, I'm home!_ followed by two lines with the name of a street and a house number in a neighbourhood that Carmilla immediately recognizes not to be far from where she lives with Mattie, though she's never actually been there before.

She thinks of waiting, giving Laura some time to maybe unpack and settle down, but she lasts barely five minutes before she's taking the keys to the car she barely uses and walking out the door.

(Being cool and unaffected can wait; she needs to see Laura _now._ )

The drive takes less than twenty minutes, and before long Carmilla finds herself in front of a two-story house, not big enough to be called a mansion, but clearly the house of someone with money.

Carmilla can't deny she's slightly intimidated.

Still, she rubs her palms on her jeans and she walks to the door, taking a deep breath before she rings the doorbell.

It's barely a minute before someone opens the door, and she's slightly surprised to find a tall man in front of her, instead of the tiny figure of Laura Hollis.

"May I help you, kid?" The man says, and Carmilla wants to be insulted at being called a _kid,_ but she's five feet three, next to what she guesses are impressive near six feet and probably thirty years on her, so she decides that - _yeah,_ maybe she is a kid.

"Good morning, sir." She says, clearing her throat before she continues. "I'm looking for Laura? Laura H-"

Before she can continue, the sound of feet hitting the stairs reaches her ears, quickly followed by a _is that for me, dad?_ just before Laura slips under her father's arm and stops in front of her.

"Hi!" She says, and Carmilla is a mix of excitement at the sight of her- _Laura_ and the idea that her father - her very scary father - is standing right behind her, arms crossed and eyebrows raised.

"Would you like to introduce me to your friend, pumpkin?" Mr. Hollis asks, and Carmilla has to stifle a laugh at the way Laura goes bright red at his words.

"I'm not five anymore, you know?" She grumbles. Then, she gestures between them. "This is my friend Carmilla, Dad. Carmilla this is my Dad, who apparently lives to embarrass me."

"Oh, I think you do plenty of that by yourself, cutie." Carmilla teases her, earning a chuckle from Mr. Hollis right before she extends her hand to him. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir."

He takes her hand and his grip is as firm as Carmilla expected it to be. In fact, she’s convinced Mr. Hollis could probably snap her hand in two if he wished to do so, and she makes a mental note that it’s probably best she stays on his good side at all times.

(Not that she plans on ever hurting Laura in any way. God, even the idea is stupid.)

“The pleasure is all mine, Carmilla.” He says once he lets go of her hand. He doesn’t have the time to say anything else, though, because Laura sweeps in then, taking Carmilla’s arm and dragging her back to her car.

“I’ll see you later, Dad!” She calls out behind her shoulder, and Carmilla has to bite her lip to hold in her amusement at the scene unfolding in front of her.

Once they get in the car, she turns to Laura, “What was that all about, cupcake?”

“I had to get you away from him before he pulled out the childhood pictures.” She huffs. Then, she turns to Carmilla. “Did he go inside?”

Carmilla furrows her brows. “What?”

“My father,” Laura explains. “Did he go inside or is he still at the door?”

“He’s inside.” Carmilla tells her, after glancing back at Laura’s porch. “Why?”

Laura doesn’t say anything, though. Instead, she leans over, one hand cupping Carmilla’s cheek and pulling her for a kiss.

(Carmilla briefly wonders, once her brain has time to catch up on what’s happening, what it is about Laura and surprise kisses.)

“I missed you.” Laura breathes out, resting her forehead against Carmilla’s as she pulls back. “I’ve been dreaming of doing that again ever since I set foot in that plane months ago.”

Carmilla brings their mouths together again.

“Trust me, I almost got tickets to Los Angeles because I couldn’t wait to touch you again.”

Laura bites her lip, and then, “You should have.”

It seems like a heavy topic - one that Carmilla really didn’t mean to get into just moments after Laura touched down in Vancouver - but the idea that Laura wanted to be close to her as much as Carmilla did is enough to make all her second thoughts disappear.

(Not that she actually _had_ any, to begin with.)

“I’ll keep that in mind.” She says, and Laura grins at her just before she tugs on Carmilla’s hair and kisses her again.

“Is it bad that we’ve only kissed a handful of times and I don’t want to ever stop?” She says, and Carmilla feels her heart speeding up in her chest because Laura just managed to put into words what she’s been trying to make sense of for the last couple of months.

She takes Laura’s hand then, slips their fingers together and gives it a soft squeeze. “It’s not bad.”

It’s not bad at all, really.

* * *

Carmilla comes to work early for only the second time in history the Monday after Laura mentions that she wants to come to work with her. Laura’s wearing sunglasses and a scarf and it’s only when they’re in the elevator that Carmilla realizes the purpose of the accessories.

“You know that literally no one is going to miss the fact that it’s you even if you’re wearing sunglasses, right?”

Laura grimaces, “I hope they do. I don’t want to cause a circus.”

“Then you shouldn’t have come to work with me.”

Laura turns to face her and Carmilla can’t see her eyes, but the defiant upturn of her chin is enough to get her meaning 

“We spend enough time apart.”

Carmilla agrees.

So she just takes Laura’s hand and walks her over to her cubicle and does her best to hold back a laugh when Laura crawls into the space under her desk. It’s not really much different from Carmilla’s normal routine. She’s still completely distracted despite not glancing at her phone once since they entered the building. It can probably be argued that she’s even less productive, especially when Laura gets into the habit of tugging on the ankles of Carmilla’s jeans in order to signal that she wants Carmilla to stop whatever she’s doing and lean down to give her a kiss instead.

“I am going to get fired.” Carmilla says after what feels like the hundredth time it’s happened. She’s bent sideways and forwards in the most awkward angle, but Laura looks so pretty with her eyes still closed and a smile on her face that she can’t bring herself to move away quite yet.

“Probably. Can’t we just go home already?”

“No.” Carmilla leans closer again and tugs on Laura’s bottom lip with her teeth. The small laugh she gets in return makes her smile. “What do you want me to do, fake sick?”

Laura hums in approval, “Then we can just make out for the rest of the day.”

“All day?”

“Yep. And you can finally meet Conan - "

"Bro, what are you doing?"

The sound of Kirsch's voice startles Carmilla so much that she almost hits her head against the underside of the desk.

"Uh, nothing." She sits up and moves her chair in an attempt to block his sight. "Dropped a pencil."

" _Bro_. Why is _Laura Hollis_ under your desk?"

Carmilla manages to squeak out a _who?_ before Laura crawls out from under the desk and stands, a hand held out to Kirsch.

The look on his face when Laura says _I'm sorry for the chrysanthemums_ is truly priceless.


	6. Chapter 6

One uncharacteristically sunny afternoon, just a few days before Christmas, Carmilla finds herself at Stanley Park, Laura's fingers laced with hers and Conan zigzag-ing between their legs, stretching his dog leash as far as it will go.

In the back of her mind, she's convinced she's daydreaming again.

"I'm just saying," Carmilla sighs, kicking a small stone in their path and glancing at Laura. "They're all up in my business and it's _annoying._ "

Laura laughs at this, shaking her head as she tugs Conan back a bit. "They're your siblings, Carm. They're probably just worried."

"They're not worried." Carmilla rolls her eyes. "They know I'm see - they know I met someone and now they're _prying,_ because they’re annoying assholes like that."

Laura finds a patch of grass she deems nice and pulls Conan back so that she can free him from his leash. She watches as he starts to run in circles for a moment, just before she sits down against a tree and pulls Carmilla with her, resting her head on Carmilla's shoulder and wrapping her arms around her waist.

She lets out a hum of satisfaction once they're settled and starts playing with Carmilla's fingers.

After a moment, she says, "What's so bad about you telling them?"

Carmilla wants to twist around so she can face Laura because this seems like the type of conversation that they should have while holding some sort of _eye-contact_ , but she's too comfortable in her arms, so she settles for bringing one of Laura's hands to her lips just before she opens her mouth again.

"Nothing is bad," she says, and pauses for a moment. "I just didn't know if you'd want me to do that or not."

She feels a shiver run down her spine as the tip of Laura's fingers push her hair back, just before her lips touch the skin of Carmilla's neck.

Then, she says, "I introduced you to my dad the day I got here, Carm."

She's got a point. But then again, "You said I was your friend. Mattie and Will - it's - they know I've met someone."

Laura is quiet for a moment, and Carmilla is about to turn around and apologize for blowing this thing up when she feels Laura pressing another kiss to her neck.

"I can introduce you to him as my girlfriend, if you'd like." She whispers, the combination of her words and her warm breath against Carmilla's skin making it hard for Carmilla to focus.

When the words click in her brain, though, she finds herself scrambling to meet Laura's gaze.

"Did you just-"

Laura seems amused. "What, baby?"

"Girlfriend?"

"Well," Laura shrugs. "We've made out _a lot_ these past few weeks..."

"Laura." Carmilla huffs. "I'm serious."

Laura brings their lips together in a kiss that's long enough to leave Carmilla dizzy, but short enough to make her crave more.

"I'm serious too." Then, she smirks. "At some point, you're gonna have to start believing what I tell you.

Carmilla gives her yet another eye-roll, but she wastes no time in kissing Laura, this time long enough to keep her satisfied.

(For the next five minutes, at least.)

"Do you think maybe - " She bites her lips and Laura squeezes her hips, urging her to go on. "My siblings and I have weekly dinners together, as you know, and Christmas is kind of a big thing for us." She pauses. "Uh, I guess my point is - well, would you like to join us? And maybe they can get to know you and stop annoy-"

Laura interrupts her in the way she seems favorable to do, her lips stretched in a smile as they press against Carmilla's.

"I would love to."

"Yeah?"

"Absolutely." Laura assures her, and then her hands cup Carmilla's cheeks and they're kissing once again.

(And then Conan decides it's a good time to come back and show them some love and  Carmilla likes Laura _a lot_ but not enough that she can deal with her dog spitting all over her face.)

(Seriously. Gross.)

* * *

 

Will faints.

Laura barely has a foot in the door before Carmilla hears her brother hit the ground. Mattie mumbles something under her breath about how William is lucky that they splurged for carpet instead of settling for hardwood before moving over to help him.

“They’re prone to dramatics.” Carmilla tells Laura, welcoming her with a smile and a kiss.

“I see where you get it.”

Carmilla rolls her eyes.

“Mattie, Will.” She says, walking over to the dining table. Mattie’s got Will propped up in his usual seat now. “This is Laura. Laura. Mattie and Will, my siblings.”

Mattie holds a hand out for Laura to shake. “So did you two meet before or after my sister made a habit of listening to your voice while she falls asleep?”

Laura turns to Carmilla, an eyebrow quirked.

“After.” Carmilla tells her. Laura looks both delighted and smug.

Carmilla doesn’t know what to expect - she never does when it comes to Laura - so she is pleasantly surprised by how easily Laura fits into conversation. She does slip into Talk Show Host Mode twice, but after Carmilla grabs a hold of her hand under the table, her nerves seemed to dissipate and all that was left was, well, sunshine.

Mattie is her usual sociable self. Carmilla thinks Mattie could be invited to dinner with the Queen and she wouldn’t bat an eyelash. William, though, is completely starstruck and Carmilla can’t say she blames him.

“So you’re going back to L.A. after Christmas?”

Carmilla watches Laura nod at the question Mattie asked and her throat tightens a little bit at the thought of going back to only being able to see Laura through the screen. She tries not to think of it - it _is_ Christmas after all - but when midnight strikes and her siblings rush to the presents under the tree, Laura holds her back.

“I got you something.”

“You shouldn’t have.”

“Shut up, you’re my girlfriend. I’m obviously going to get you something.” Carmilla smiles at that and supposes it’s only fair because she had gotten Laura something too. “Here.”

“What is it?”

“Open it."

It’s the first season of _Catfish_ on DVD.

Carmilla laughs at the sight, but that doesn’t seem to be enough of a reaction for Laura because she reaches up and brings Carmilla’s attention back to her.

“Carm, open it.”

So Carmilla does. The cellophane is a little tough to rip open, but she manages. And when she is finally able to open the DVD case, there’s an envelope staring back at her.

“What is it?” She asks, her voice rough because she knows exactly what it is. There’s a little airplane logo on the damn thing.

“A plane ticket to Los Angeles.” Laura says. “So you can see your favourite talk show film live.”

Carmilla feels like her heart is about to combust. “I thought Fallon filmed in New York?”

“Ass.” Laura is smiling too. She continues to even when Carmilla leans in for a kiss. It’s almost like she can’t keep herself from doing so. “Merry Christmas.”

* * *

 

Carmilla knows something is up as soon as she walks into work the day after Christmas.

She's known around the _Sun_ building as the rude IT tech who hates to solve their problems, but no one ever actually pays attention to her when she's going about her daily business.

That morning, however, it's as if she's the most interesting thing to walk those hallways and more than once Carmilla finds herself checking her clothes to make sure her shoes match or that she didn't accidentally walk out of her house in her pajama pants, but nothing seems out of the ordinary.

It isn't until she gets to her cubicle and finds Kirsch staring at her all wide-eyed that she really knows _something_ is up.

"Am I getting fired?" She asks, not even bothering to take a seat. "Because that would make my life a whole lot easier right now so there's really no need for you to be staring at me like that."

Kirsch blinks twice at her. "You haven't seen it? Oh God, you haven't seen it."

"Seen _what_ , Wilson?" Carmilla growls, taking a step towards him in an attempt of being intimidating.

It always works, though she have no idea why a guy who's over six feet tall would ever be scared of _her,_ but this time Kirsch only brings her computer to life, pushes a few keys and soon enough Carmilla is staring at dozens of tweets with pictures of her and Laura.

They're from the day they spent at the park the week before and she can see the links go from _TMZ_ to _Perez Hilton_ and she's slightly scared to even click on them, let alone read anything past the headlines she can see on the tweets.

She really, _really_ hates the internet sometimes.

"Is that why all these idiots have been staring at me since I walked into this goddamn building?" She grumbles, though she doesn't really need an answer from Kirsch.

Still, he nods anyway. "I'm pretty sure they popped out over the weekend." He explains. "I think there are more of you two having dinner somewhere and even one of you walking out of her house."

Then, he opens _Google_ and types out something else before showing it to Carmilla again.

"They did a profile on you and everything." His brows furrow together. "You were your school's homecoming queen? I can't even imagine that."

Carmilla rolls her eyes. She lived a good life pretending that never happened.

"Give me a second."

She takes out her phone to text her girlfriend, but the minute she's typing up the message, it buzzes in her hand and the picture of Laura - curled up on an armchair in oversized Christmas sweater and a mug of hot chocolate full of marshmallows - fills her screen.

"Hey." Carmilla says, not wasting any time to answer the call. "I was just about to text you."

From the other side of the line, Laura lets out a sigh. "My publicist just called." She is quiet for a moment, and then she starts rambling. "Baby, I'm _so_ sorry. I didn't even realize the paparazzi would know that I was here and I should've talked to you about this and maybe warned that there was a chance this could happen and I didn't even know if you would be comfortable with this, I-"

"Laura, hey, hey." Carmilla interrupts her. "Breathe."

She hears as Laura does exactly that, and then she sighs again. "I'm sorry."

Carmilla looks at the picture on her screen one more time before she turns away from Kirsch and all the prying eyes from the neighboring cubicles.

"We look good in those pictures."

"W-wait, what?" Laura splutters.

"We do." Carmilla shrugs, even though Laura can't see. "And I've seen enough candid pictures of you to realize that this was something that could happen, cutie. You really don't have to worry about it."

"I know," Laura grunts. "But I still should've talked to you about it. Or maybe been more careful."

"I don't want to be more careful. I want to enjoy my time with my girlfriend, and if they happen to get some pictures of it, then it's fine." She bites her lip, fighting the smile that threatens to take over at the mere thought of the moments she spent with Laura. "Let them know we're happy."

"They can get nasty sometimes." Laura tells her, but Carmilla can practically hear the smile on her voice. "They probably will be all over us when you're in L.A."

"That's okay."

"And they have no care for pri-"

"Laura." Carmilla interrupts her again, fighting an eye roll at her girlfriend's stubbornness. "You're worth all that and a thousand paparazzi more."

Laura is quiet for a moment. "Are you sure?"

"Yes." Carmilla assures her. Then, she grins. "Besides, can you imagine what a story it'll be when they ask us how we met?"

Laura lets out a _shut up,_ but Carmilla can practically see the smile on her lips so she doesn't take it too seriously.

When she hangs up the call and comes back to her cubicle, she doesn't even care that everyone is staring at her anymore.

She could do a whole lot worse than being known for dating Laura Hollis.

* * *

 

Laura comes home again a few months later.

Once again, Carmilla gets a _Honey, I’m home!_ in the middle of her work day. She has to wait, though, before going to see her girlfriend. She has a job, after all, and - as much as she has been craving to hold Laura’s hand and to kiss her - Carmilla thinks she should probably stop giving this stupid newspaper plausible reasons to fire her.

After her shift, she practically runs to the train station - she fidgets when she has to stand relatively still on the train, can’t help it - and then to the bus stop. She barely has enough presence of mind to send Mattie a text saying that she won’t make it home for dinner.

At one point, Carmilla finds herself wondering if she will ever stop being so stupidly devoted to this girl.

The answer is probably never.

When the door to Laura’s father’s house finally opens in front of Carmilla for the first time since December, it’s not quite what she expected. Laura’s dog has gotten _massive_ and Carmilla almost stumbles backwards when he jumps up to lick at her face.

“Jesus.” She says, managing to regain her balance and set Conan down on the ground just as Laura comes barreling into her. She’s about to make a comment about how Laura is similar to an overexcited puppy when she realizes she’s the same way.

“Mr. Hollis.” She says instead, saluting at Laura’s father from over her girlfriend’s shoulder.

“Carmilla.” He returns before walking off towards the kitchen.

As soon as he’s out of sight, Carmilla pushes Laura back just enough so that they don’t have to sprain their necks to get at each other. She can’t even describe how it feels to have Laura so close after months away. Technology might be making strides, but nothing compares to this - to having Laura’s fingers skimming the skin of her jaw while they kiss, her smile pressed against Carmilla’s own. Nothing.

“I missed you.” Laura breathes in between kisses. “I don’t understand how I’ve made it through these last few months.”

“Neither do I. I swear the days are getting - “

“Longer, I know.” Laura grimaces a little. “But we can talk about that later. Dinner first?”

Carmilla and her growling stomach agree.

Halfway through one of the best meals Carmilla recalls ever having in her whole life - Laura’s dad must be a chef, there’s just no way food can taste this good - Laura clears her throat during a break in conversation.

“Okay.” She says, squeezing Carmilla’s hand under the table. “I have to tell you guys something.”

Laura’s father raises an eyebrow in her direction and Carmilla shrugs as if to say _I’m as clueless as you when it comes to this, buddy_.

“Go ahead.” He says, taking a sip of his water.

“I’ve been offered a job to host a daytime talk show. Guess where it is.”

With her luck, Carmilla thinks, Laura’s probably headed off to Madagascar.

“New York? London?”

“No, Dad. Carm?”

Carmilla aims for a joking tone, “Australia.”

“No.” Laura rolls her eyes at both of them. “It’s actually shooting about a fifteen minute drive from here.”

Carmilla’s breath catches in her throat.

“You’re moving back to the city?” Mr. Hollis’ voice has enough hope in it for both of them.

“For my job, yes.” Laura’s beaming at her and Carmilla’s not quite sure how to arrange her features to return the expression, but she tries her best.

Mr. Hollis snorts and looks pointedly at Carmilla, “You sure you’re not moving back for your number one fan?”

Laura laughs lightly, “She likes Jimmy Fallon.”

* * *

 

Later, after Carmilla has thanked every deity she can think of, she goes home to get some sleep. She’s sitting on a cold SkyTrain bench when her phone buzzes to life.

**Laura (10:47 P.M.):**

Are you a Girl Scout? Because you tie my heart in knots.

 

Carmilla is about to type out a reply when her brain decides to make a parallel to a moment like this one so many months ago. She’s suddenly struck by how far they’ve come and how far they can still go and her heart skips at the thought.

 

**Carmilla (10:52 P.M.):**

I am, you know.

**Laura (10:53 P.M.):**

A girl scout?

**Carmilla (10:55 P.M.):**

Your number one fan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! If you need us, we are [here](http://itmustbebunnies.tumblr.com) and [here](http://sedinbrothers.tumblr.com).


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